A good memoir with a message is about more than just a time of change in your life.
It is driven by topic and inspires the reader to feel, learn and grow along with you.
Clarify the point of your book.
Choose the timeline.
Plan the structure of your
MEMOIR with a MESSAGE.*
(*a.k.a. hybrid memoir/self-help OR memoir+)
Then write on and publish in 2024.
What exactly IS the story you want to tell?
What do you know now because of what happened then?
Who else needs to know what you learned?
How can your story plus other ‘how-to’ information benefit them?
As you participate, you may discover that what you thought
was an ordinary life has not been so ordinary after all.
Self-authorship is delightfully embedded within the book authorship process.
Your investment will be AUD $600
(OR 2 monthly payments of AUD $300)
‘It’s not about what you did. It’s about what you did with it.’
What a Memoir IS
What a Memoir IS NOT
If you have a strong pull to write a memoir WITH self-help/how-to information to benefit others, this program is for you.
You have lived a life with high points and low, and you feel you have value to add to the world through publishing.
The thought of writing your own memoir with a message excites you and scares you – and cannot be ignored any longer.
This ‘memoir with a message’ program is for you if you:
- are willing to explore your own responses to experiences during a specific period in your life
- are prepared to share your own growth
- feel you have a big message & important lessons worth sharing
- want to connect with others so they also gain from your investigation of the human experience
Your book may be:
- A perfect addition to your current business or practice, adding value to your clients’ lives
- An important personal project
- A legacy to leave for your family & friends
You’re getting a lot of things right, but you know you could be making much faster progress if you make your book a priority, work with a book coach, and give yourself the gift of blocks of uninterrupted time.
How this program works
Pre-reading
Read from a suggested preparation list.
Live sessions
Attend the Zoom coaching sessions with Bev.
Complete worksheets
Between sessions, complete blueprint exercises.
Plan your Memoir
Develop your chapter outlines before you write.
“I enrolled in Bev’s program because I wanted to move on with my memoir/self-help book for others dealing with Parkinson’s. When I go back and look at what I had already written, and compare it to the structure Bev provided, I get a lot more insight into where I might have fluffed too much or gone off on a tangent on my own. I am now progressing with confidence, using this new blueprint.”
—Nikki Creber, Parkinson’s Lifestyle Coach & Advocate
“All sessions were very respectful, everyone’s ideas were listened to and advised on, and I thought the pace was just right. Bev guides you every step of the way and makes suggestions but does not demand that you do what she says. Even though I am a long way from producing my memoir with a message for other women, it is taking shape in my mind because of the ‘roadmap’ Bev provided.”
—Colleen Cartwright, Emeritus Professor, Chair of the SCU Human Research Ethics Committee
About the Program
This short (edited for brevity) video below with accomplished executive coach, Dolores Cummins, will give you an indication of the value of the ‘Memoir with a Message’ blueprint process. Dolores was not progressing with her memoir/self-help book, and the blueprint framework and exercises gave her the clarity and momentum she was missing.
Your Book Coach
Bev Ryan is an experienced self-publishing mentor, group program facilitator, and book production manager, and was recently certified as an Author Accelerator Non-fiction Book Coach (which includes memoir).
Memoir methodology & materials will be drawn largely from Author Accelerator’s proven memoir blueprint process, which has been the critical foundation for many clients’ successful memoirs, published traditionally and independently.
Sometimes called memoir/self-help, this genre offers a powerful way to combine your own experiences with a strong message and inspiration for others.
Here are some excellent examples:
-
- The Dutiful Daughter’s Guide to Caregiving: A Practical Memoir by Judith Henry
- Bear Boy by Justin Baker
- The Middle Finger Project by Ash Ambirge
“I enrolled because I was just about to revisit the manuscript of an incomplete memoir that had been in the bottom drawer of my desk for a couple of decades. The main thing I got was a clear understanding of what memoir is, and how I had become bogged down with structural issues in my earlier attempt. Bev is a relaxed and knowledgeable facilitator.”
—Wenda Matthews, Educator and Community Development Worker (Arts and Health). Now life-long student & writer.
“I reached out to Bev because I had actually finished the bulk of the content of my memoir, but I was lacking the skills to transform it from a glorified journal to a book. I’d read the content so many times I just couldn’t see where to go from there. The only way forward was with a set of fresh eyes, and the experience to help me move the text forward into something others would want to read.
The book blueprint exercises Bev gave me were the gamechangers. They allowed me to really understand the meaning of my book. I had been so neck-deep in this project I had lost sight of why I started it in the first place. The exercises teased out a lot of conversations with Bev, and her questions fuelled my writing and self-editing. There had been no real structure to my book, so to my shock, after only a couple of catch ups and Bev’s expertise, this book emerged! Even in its draft stage it made me teary because it was finally taking shape!”
–Erin Benjamin, Author
The Memoir with a Message program includes
FOUR regular 60-minute live coaching calls (they will be recorded)
Time between calls to do the thinking and work required
Author worksheets throughout the program to help you construct your book blueprint, based on the books, ‘Blueprint for a Memoir’ and ‘Blueprint for a Nonfiction Book’ by Jennie Nash, my book coaching mentor and founder of Author Accelerator.
Access to Bev for up to 3 extra short calls during the program
Access to Bev for review of your book blueprint (max 20 pages) up to 3 months after the conclusion of the program
Build your Memoir with a Message from a Solid Blueprint
Your investment is AUD $600
(OR 2 monthly payments of AUD $300)
“Writing and publishing a memoir with a message about a special time in my life was a long held dream. Having finally started this brave journey, I was unsure where to go next or how to launch my book into the world. Bev Ryan is a wonderful support and coach, and ensured ‘Altitude’ was completed, and came to life beautifully.”
— Dolores Cummins, Executive Coach & Consultant